


The Struggle To Be Seen As Human

by dillonmania



Category: DCU (Comics), The Flash (Comics)
Genre: Autism, Autism Spectrum, Gen, Misunderstandings, Social Relationships, social interaction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-14
Updated: 2018-01-14
Packaged: 2019-03-04 04:02:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13356087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dillonmania/pseuds/dillonmania
Summary: People often dislike what they don't understand, and the Rogues are no different.





	The Struggle To Be Seen As Human

Roscoe hadn’t said a word all afternoon, and the other Rogues would have forgotten he was there if not for the occasional sounds of his work. He was building a device for tracking the Flash, a large piece of equipment which would analyze data to determine a speedster’s velocity, location, and predicted destination.

The others had been drinking and playing cards for a few hours, and Mick got up to go to the washroom during a lull sparked by Digger’s drunkenness. He did his business and walked around to stretch his legs for a bit, and then noticed Roscoe hard at work in the next room.

“You’ve been at this for a while,” he observed, although the other man didn’t look up. Mick handed him a beer, to which Roscoe mumbled some thanks and carefully set it aside for later. After all, he had work to do which required intense concentration.

“So what does this thing do?” Mick asked, and Roscoe sighed wearily.  
“I explained it to all of you before I began.”  
Mick’s eyebrows went up. “Yeah, you did. Just making conversation so we’d have something to talk about. I don’t really speak to you that often, y’know.”  
Roscoe pondered his words and decided there was no ill-intent behind them, though he usually hated small talk because he was terrible at it. He began tinkering with a troublesome electrical connection before speaking.

“It’ll track the speedsters,” was all he said, despite having gone into far more depth (too much, according to Digger) about the subject a few days earlier, and had clearly enjoyed doing so. Mick sized him up and then sat down a few feet away from his chair, opening the other beer and handing it to him.

“Okay, what’s bothering you? You’ve clearly got a bug up your ass about something,” Mick said with typical patient wisdom, but Roscoe put the beer down and simply looked annoyed.  
“I have work to do right now, and nothing is bothering me.”  
“You don’t have to do anything. Digger’s passed out on a pile of poker chips, an’ I think Sam’s gone to steal some more beer. Take a break every now and then to enjoy life.”

“That’s easy for you to say,” Roscoe told him with a scowl, but avoided Mick’s gaze and remained focused on his task. “The only reason anyone tolerates my presence around here is because of my work and how it benefits the group. I’d be out on my own otherwise, and everyone knows it.”

Mick was completely taken aback for a few moments, but thought about it and scratched his head uncomfortably. “That’s not true. We like you and we respect you a lot.”  
“Please don’t patronize me, Mick. It’s very unbecoming.”

A minute’s silence passed before Mick spoke again, during which Roscoe continued working. “All right, there’s some truth to what you said. But it’s not easy for us either, y’know. You can be a good guy and fun sometimes, but also really hard to talk to at other times…you tend to make us feel dumb and like you’re talking down to us. Like you think you’re smarter than we are.”

Roscoe fought the impulse to snap back with _I **am** smarter than you_ , but managed to calm himself. “It’s not intentional,” was all he said. He was bewildered by Mick’s words, because he’d always been taught that a man must establish his superior bona fides if he was to get ahead in life and be respected by society. Didn't people tolerate him only because of his high intelligence and technical skills? Wasn’t that the reason the Rogues no longer scorned his eccentricities?

“Okay, glad to hear it’s not on purpose, but the other guys need to know that, and you need to show it to us too,” Mick replied, having noticed his obvious confusion. Roscoe grabbed the nearby beer and took a panicked gulp, because he wasn’t sure how to handle this discussion and just wanted it to be over. 

The best way to end the conversation quickly, he decided, was with pragmatic efficiency. “I will remember that. But this project really should be finished before next week’s heist.” The device would have been completed long before the deadline even if the Rogues had gabbed at him non-stop, but appealing to a teammate’s sense of duty seemed the most polite way of squirming out of an awkward situation. He didn’t notice the surprised stare and look of annoyance as Mick walked away without another word.

“Sure took you a long time in the john,” Mark noted as Mick rejoined the others with a sour expression, slamming his beer down on the table with more force than was necessary.  
“I was talking to the dickhead,” Mick growled with irritation, and was answered with some knowing looks. “He’s really got a knack for making me feel like shit.”  
“He’s good at building stuff,” Hartley said, which felt like the best defence he could offer an unpopular colleague. “And he’s fine when talking about the things he’s interested in.”  
“He’s a fucking nutjob who likes tops. Cut the cards, Mardon,” Len replied tersely, and the discussion was officially over. The Rogues began playing poker again, and no further thought was given to the man in the other room.

**Author's Note:**

> As some may know, I feel very strongly that Roscoe is on the autistic spectrum. There's no question that he's genuinely an asshole sometimes (particularly in the modern era), but I've long gotten the feeling that some of his alleged dick behaviour may just be social difficulties/differences. We've seen it hinted at a few times in a few issues, and it can possibly be seen in [Mick's narration here](https://i.imgur.com/uiNSoEf.jpg); it's not uncommon for autistic people to unintentionally talk over or talk down to people. The ["little professor" stereotype](http://www.yourlittleprofessor.com/) didn't come from nowhere, and a lot of shunned autistic people find that others respect only their academic or intellectual abilities (for example, tolerating a kid who helps with homework). It's not surprising that someone would play up how smart they are when that's the only thing others respond to -- I've done it myself, and eventually had to unlearn that habit because people didn't react well to it. And if you aren't reading other people's social cues properly you may not realize others are uncomfortable or annoyed. So I wanted to write a short ficlet about how that might play out with Roscoe and be seen from both sides, and how it might lead to some misunderstandings.
> 
> The device Roscoe's working on in this fic [was seen in Rogues' Revenge](https://i.imgur.com/VVkrMfa.jpg). Note that it's still working years later despite neglect and exposure to the elements...his work was built to last.


End file.
